Nature Is So
by Shaposhit
Summary: Their relationship has always been rocky, but when Kaname crosses the line with Amane, it's gotta be the end for Momomi and Kaname's relationship. Hasn't it? Time to realize that wielding a knife will hurt someone, often yourself. MomomixKaname.
1. Goodnight Moon

_"Little child, be not afraid..." _She whispered, gazing down at her fingers, tears rolling silently down her cheeks. _"The stormclouds mask your beloved moon..._

The tears poured faster, cascading onto her bare, shivering knees. Her breaths grew into irregular, hiccuping gasps, as her chest shook with sadness. Her eyes heavy and unfocused, she gazed off into the thick woods, arms thrown across her chest in a vain attempt to keep herself warm. The rain pounded fiercely upon the pagoda's roof, and with the tears streaming down her cheeks, she felt all alone, in the middle of an unfamiliar forest, rain coursing down her body. All around her the rain fell like teardrops.

"And you loved her," the half-sentence came, choked and half-formed, from her soft lips. Those lips, which for long had belonged to someone else, were hers for tonight. "And you fucking loved her. Thought I knew you...thought I knew everything. All that time, you fucking loved her. What have you done to me?" She was the best, she knew it. Why would anyone in the world choose someone else over her? She'd seen them, together, behind the gym building. It had torn her heart apart, just as everytime she was forced to watch and stand guard, her chest felt as though there were claws inside of her.

She didn't see the stars. She didn't see the trees. She didn't see the sunrise. The rain continued to pound savagely against the ground as Kiyashiki Momomi stared blankly out at the thick, dark forest, shivering every time a raindrop hit her skin, the tears dried on her face. And then, when she risked being caught, Momomi slipped away into the forest, silent as a deer, with a tear-streaked face and a broken heart.

"Where the hell is she?!" Kaname inquired of the blank wall. "She can't have been out all night! Can she?!"

The wall said nothing.

"But she's terrified of storms!"

The wall merely offered bland, ivory almost-comfort.

"What did I do?!"

The wall looked sternly back at her. It was reprimanding her, she knew.

"Okay, okay, I know what I did! But she didn't have to run off like that!"

The wall didn't sympathize with her. It thought Momomi had a point. Kaname sighed, brushing her hair back from her face, feeling the warm pillow under her cheek like a reminder of all the good times they'd had together on that very bed. "I'm not worrying about her, Wall-chan! I know she can take care of herself. I'm just upset about not sleeping with her last night. A growing girl needs to get some every once and a while." Kaname felt her stomach clench at what she knew was a lie. And Kaname prided herself on not lying.

"MOMOMI!" The word was stifled by the trees, bouncing back to the speaker before it had a chance to go farther than the clearing. "Come out already! They'll start looking for you!" Was it Kaname's imagination, or did the wind whisper in her ears? Did it sound like, "I'll never come out for you"?

"It isn't funny!"

"I don't love you," the wind whispered in her ears.

"AND I DON'T LOVE YOU, EITHER! Shion will start looking for you, and I don't want her to find you if I can't!"

"What do you care if she finds me? You've just been using me."

"If Shion beats me, I'll never hear the end of it!"

"You're talking to a breeze, Kaname..."

This ended Kaname's conversation with the wind and the forest. She trudged around in the woods, searching for her roomate, with no luck_. It's not that I want to find her_, Kaname told herself fiercely_. It's just that I've gotta chew her out for not obeying me. Or, well, not coming home. And I've gotta yell at her for that. That's why I'm looking._

* * *

"THIS ISN'T FUNNY!" Kaname screeched. _At least_, Kaname thought, _this time I'm not yelling at an inanimate object._ "I skipped all my classes looking for you, and all the while you were at school?! Don't you have any self-respect?!"

"The question here," Momomi said cooly, eyes narrowed. "is whether YOU do."

"What the hell, Momomi?! What did I do?!" Kaname knew this was the wrong thing to say when Momomi glared at her in a way Kaname had hoped would never be directed at her. Her eyes glowed with disgust, and even Kaname knew this was not the time to argue with her girlfriend. If Momomi even was her girlfriend anymore.

"It's not what you did," Momomi began. Kaname began to breath a sigh of relief, but sucked her breath back in at Momomi's next words: "It's _who _you did."

Behind the gym. Yesterday. She had been caught unaware, that innocent, sweet girl, with no idea what was coming to her.

Amane.


	2. Admitting It

And somewhere, deep in Momomi's sweet, wheat-colored eyes, Kaname realized that this was no longer a game. She had almost lost her lover, her friend, her accomplice. To her shame, Momomi felt a prickling sensation in her eyes, and tried to remain strong, but it was too late. Once again, Momomi was crying for the one person she'd sworn she would never cry for.

Warm, soft arms were around her shoulders as Kaname pulled her close. Momomi's shoulders shook, as she remained rigid against the other girl's embrace. She would not fall to this monster, not again. She had learned her lesson.

"Momomi..."

She drew in a quick breath, hearing the tremor in Kaname's voice. Kaname was crying. Her lover was crying. She had never seen that happen, not once, not when the other was upset or happy. This was more than Momomi could handle.

She pushed her away. She shoved the dark-haired girl away from her, feeling her body and mind break down. This was not how things happened. This was not how the world worked. Kaname, proud _Kaname, _was breaking down in her arms.

In her arms no longer, as Kaname fell back onto the bed, red eyes wide with shock. Her mouth gaped, whether in surprise, remorse, or rage, Momomi knew not. She only knew that she could not stay bound to this liar anymore.

"Momomi, don't go...d-don't go, I need you..." Kaname choked, her eyes hidden behind a curtain of hair. Momomi simply shook her head. "M-my partner in crime, you d-don't understand - I need you to k-keep me sane..." Kaname was crying in earnest now, tears streaming hotly down her flushed cheeks. Momomi turned away. _Crocodile tears, _she thought bitterly.

"Kaname, _you_ don't understand. I will never be able to trust you again. I poured my heart and soul into you, and you never repaid me." Momomi was glad to hear that her voice was strong and proud, much like her lover.

"I-I'll try..."

"You've had enough second chances." Her eyes glittered with regret and pain. Kaname muttered incomprehensible protests, like a baby who wants her pacifier back.

"J-just...n-no...d-don't..."

"In fairy tales, the heroine always gets three wishes. I've wished mine, and you ignored me. Now, you get three kisses," Momomi whispered, tears beginning to well up in her own eyes. The other seemed to hope, daring to think that perhaps these three kisses would bring redemption.

"One for love." Her eyes closed, and a tear seeped out from beneath her eyelid, as she leaned forward to press her lips, long and sweet, to the other girl's.

"One for lust," she murmured as she drew away, the tear's path pale and salty on her beautiful skin. This kiss was passionate, fiery. Kaname's hand grasped under Momomi's shirt, for what could very well be the last time she was able to touch her in this way.

"And one for goodbye." Her voice was strong, a determined look in her eyes, as her tears were wiped away. Momomi pressed her mouth to Kaname's tear-stained cheek. One last kiss, upon her cheek, to say that this was the end, Kaname knew. She had no hope left. She had ruined her relationship, and ruined Momomi's trust and infatuation with her.

Momomi stood, turning, and walked out the door.

She walked out the door.

Hand on the knob.

Turned it.

Wood creaked open.

She disappeared behind it.

One last flash of her silvery skirt.

She walked out the door.

And Kaname was alone.

* * *

_She will return, _Kaname told herself. _She'll come back - she will. She has to._

That door did not open.

No sweet, beautiful face peered out at her.

Wheat-colored hair did not fall across her face.

Her voice did not whisper apologies and forgiveness.

She sat alone on that bed, staring yet not seeing. Her tears came until there were none left to cry. Her limbs were weak, too weak to lift her from that spot. She would stay in that room until her body decayed, until she could have Momomi again. Is this what Momomi meant to her? Life? She had not noticed how important the other girl had become, until her skipping, game-playing, cruel ways had torn them apart.

She lay down again, pressed her salty, aching head against the pillow, and closed her eyes.

_I've done the right thing, _Momomi told herself, drawing her knees close to her chest. She was sitting in the pavillion once more, alone, murmuring, trying to calm herself. She was scared, scared that she had made the wrong decision. Every fiber of her being wanted to run inside and throw herself into Kaname's arms, but she did not. She knew that this time, the other girl had to come first.

There she waited, as the sun fell and the moon rose. There she waited, terrified but strong. There she waited, regaining herself, remember who she had been before Kaname had stolen her heart.

And so she was strong. She stood strong, and the other girl became weak, following her trail out to the pavillion, to confess her sorrow.

Standing there, in the midnight breeze, breathing softly, they stood. Facing each other, stars overhead and soft grass underfoot, was a huge step to recovery. The sight of Kaname's dark, puffy eyes, and Momomi's pale face. The realization that sometimes, admitting you're wrong is better than being right. There were no words, but they felt it. It was in her face, the proud beauty Kaname's face, that she had come down for someone else. That she had given so much up to be loved.

They held each other close, until dawn.

_Well, now I am grown  
And these years have shown  
Rain's a part of how life goes  
But it's dark and it's late  
So I'll hold you and wait  
'til your frightened eyes do close_

And I hope that you'll know  
That nature is so  
This same rain that draws you near me  
Falls on rivers and land  
And forests and sand  
Makes the beautiful world that you see  
In the morning

Everything's fine in the morning  
The rain will be gone in the morning  
But I'll still be here in the morning

Lullabye For a Stormy Night, Vienna Teng


End file.
